Trail Blazers & Chain Breakers

Hard conversations are hard. It's all to easy to think that by avoiding them we are keeping the peace... but we're not. We're just keeping the resentment, frustration & tension. In today's episode, we talk hard conversations, why we avoid them, resentment, fear & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if...

Would you consider yourself a calm and centered presence in your kids life? In today's episode, we talk about why it's so hard and so important for your kids, what it means and looks like, and how to actually become more calm and centered. Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we w...

If you're anything like us, you're really good at saying the wrong thing in a heated moment... In today's episode, we hit on how to not do exactly that when your kids are upset. Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enjoyed the episode, would you please l...

Sometimes it's not about adding things, but taking things away. In today's episode we talk 5 things we had to let go of in our relationship in order to survive. Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enjoyed the episode, would you please leave a quick rating or...

Parents are supposed to build us up, but sometimes they can can tear us down. In today's episode we talk about forgiving your parents, why not forgiving is hurting yourself, what forgiveness is & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enjoyed the episode,...

Letting your children fail is hard. Watching them experience disappointment, frustration & discomfort is painful. But sometimes, it's what they need. In today's episode, we talk making life easier on our kids, letting them fail, consequences, shame & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with...

We all have our moments where we're tough to love... In today's episode, we tackle the question of how to love each other in our less than lovable moments. We share stories, techniques, what worked for us (and didn't), and even talk about training your husband like a dog! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are li...

Conflict in a marriage doesn't mean it's doomed to failure. In today's episode, we talk why conflict is necessary, how to fight fair, and practical steps to learning how to manage conflict in your marriage. Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enjoyed th...

What's best for the relationship is not always what's most convenient for you (or your partner). In today's episode, we talk forgiveness & resentment, having difficult conversations, modeling a relationship you'd want your kids to have and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with young...

Sometimes the line between perception and reality is blurred. In relationships, what you intended  to communicate is different that what was received. In today's episode, we discuss how to walk the line between perception & reality, why perception is more important than reality, how to handle this better and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't...

How do you react when you feel disrespected? For most people, the answer is some for of “like a child...” This lead us to the realization that most people did not feel valued and respected as children. Today, we're talking about ways to ensure that we break this chain and make our children feel valued and respected. Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't cu...

Words have power We all know this, but how do we actually guard the impact of our words on ourselves and those around us? In today's episode, we cover keeping our mouths shut, intentional listening, having an "eject button," body language & tone, and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with...

In today's episode, we share the most impactful changes we made in our marriage to go from near failure to happier than ever. We talk why you should run your relationship like a business, the weight of being the model for our kids, learning to speak emotion instead of logic, dropping expectations & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like...

Childhood experiences, whether traumatic events or subtle conditioning, can surface at any time.  When they come out in our romantic relationships, it can be especially difficult (& dangerous for our partner) to navigate...  Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enj...

Many of us dream of passing down generational wealth, but what about generational knowledge?  What kind of knowledge can we pass down that will change the trajectory of our family tree?  In today's episode, we talk generational wealth vs. generational knowledge, protecting vs. providing, boundaries, the sex talk and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don&apo...

"Believe in yourself" is easy to say, but harder to do. This week, we talk about how to develop this faith in ourselves, growth mindset for adults, parenting doubts, "fake it 'til you make it," and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enj...

Anger has a bad reputation, and understandably so! But can it ever be useful? In today's episode, we talk anger, victimhood, the people who benefit from making you angry, how to use anger constructively & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with younger kids around, we warned you! If you enjoyed the...

We all KNOW we should choose growth over safety, but it's a lot easier said than done! In today's episode, we talk how to actually choose growth over safety, how the safety isn't actually that safe, how to use the pain of the past constructively & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with yo...

As we reflect back on our recent 10 year anniversary, we answer the "magic time machine" question and share the advice we'd offer ourselves at the start of our marriage. We talk healing together, learning emotions, the problem with expectations, training your husband like a dog, keeping score & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curs...

No marriage is perfect.  Anyone claiming otherwise is full of crap! In today's episode we talk about how to weather the struggles of a relationship between two imperfect humans, growing together with your partner (or not), working through your own issues & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if you are listening with you...

Frederick Douglass said "It's easier to build strong children than repair broken men."  This is deeply true, but the reality for most of us is that we must reparent ourselves into strong men & women in order to be the parents the can raise strong children.  In today's episode, we talk: raising strong kids, reparenting yourself, letting your kids question you, what it's...

In today's episode, we're joined by Melissa Smith from the Family Brand. Melissa shows parents how to transform their family cultures, create relationships that last, intentionally grow together, and find the courage to live the life they want for their family. Along with her husband Chris, she co-hosts the Family Brand podcast. We'll cover what a family brand is and how to build on...

It may not be what you want to hear, but what upsets you in other people reveals more about you than them. This is especially true in your close relationships. In today's episode, we talk "always" & "never," repeating patterns, what your kids are here to teach you & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors,...

Blame is a dangerous game. It's easy to externalize all of our problems because it feels safer to blame others, but blaming ourselves isn't the answer either. In today's episode we talk blame, how taking responsibility is different than blaming yourself, parenting mistakes and more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't curse like sailors, but if...

Here's the bottom line: we see others as a mirror of ourselves. This means that the things that anger us in other people can be incredibly informative of where we need to grow. What does that even mean? In today's episode, we go deep on this, the things we admire in others, role models vs anti-models & more! Just a warning: we do occasionally swear in these episodes.  We don't c...